Chapter 496 - 56: Sights and Sounds of the Main Territory

Chapter 496: Chapter 56: Sights and Sounds of the Main Territory

More than ten days later, under a sky thick with stars, Li Hua arrived at the border of Lin Yu’s territory, where he was met by Yuan Xiaobo, who had been waiting for him.

Lin Yu had called a meeting with his subordinates and invited Li Hua as well.

Li Hua was eager to get a better look at Lin Yu’s territory, so he decided against taking the Heaven-Reaching Vine. Instead, he wanted to fly on his sword to the Territory Core by himself.

When Lin Yu learned of his plans, he arranged for Yuan Xiaobo to act as his guide.

The moment they met, Yuan Xiaobo gave Li Hua an enthusiastic hug. It was the first time he had seen Li Hua since the latter had pledged allegiance to Lin Yu.

"Lord Li, welcome to our territory! From now on, we’re family!"

"Thank you," Li Hua responded, though his tone lacked any real joy. It seemed that even after all this time, he was still disappointed about failing to advance.

Yuan Xiaobo noticed but wasn’t bothered by it. It was perfectly normal to feel down after going from an independent lord to an Affiliated Lord. Yuan Xiaobo believed that once he showed Li Hua the might of their territory, he would naturally come to terms with it.

"Come on, the Lord asked me to welcome you and be your guide. I’ll tell you a bit about our territory."

"As you can see, our territory begins here, with this tall forest..."

While explaining the surroundings, Yuan Xiaobo led Li Hua through a cluster of trees and into a clearing where a Hovercar was parked.

"This is a car?"

Li Hua froze for a second when he saw the Hovercar. As far as he knew, all the lords were focused on unlocking military technology. Logistical skills like vehicle manufacturing hadn’t been developed by many, since everyone’s soldiers were fast on their feet, making vehicles largely useless even if they could be built.

But this vehicle in front of him was clearly not some crude prototype cobbled together right after a basic technological breakthrough.

"No wheels?"

On closer inspection, Li Hua realized this vehicle was different from any car he had ever seen.

"Of course. It’s a Hovercar. Why would it need wheels?" Yuan Xiaobo replied matter-of-factly. "Hop in. It’s a long way from here to the Territory Core. If we don’t get a move on, we might not make it there today."

(The greatest distance from the edge of the territory to the Territory Core was now over 3,500 kilometers.)

"Is this thing that slow? Maybe I should just fly myself," Li Hua suggested. His own flight speed was quite fast, and he clearly had no idea what he was in for.

"How fast can you fly?"

"I can manage two or three hundred kilometers per hour!" Li Hua estimated, quoting a number he felt was rather impressive.

"And how long can you sustain that?"

"At full power, I can keep that up for three or four hours, no problem."

Li Hua answered confidently. By his calculation, he could fly a total of 1,200 kilometers in one go at full power. If he used some Recovery Potions and his Cultivation Technique, he could even double that range.

"Impressive!" Yuan Xiaobo gave Li Hua a thumbs-up when he heard the numbers.

As a defensive-type hero, even though his Speed stat was quite high thanks to his legendary-grade bonus, he lacked the techniques and skills to fully utilize it. His own movement speed was far slower than Li Hua’s.

"Buuuut," Yuan Xiaobo’s tone shifted, "you’re still no match for this Hovercar. It flies through the air too, and it’s a fair bit faster than you."

Li Hua was skeptical. Even a lord who specialized in the technology path shouldn’t be able to produce a vehicle faster than him at this point. An airplane, maybe, but not a car.

’This Hovercar flies, so it’s technically an aircraft. I suppose it’s not impossible for it to be faster than me. I just don’t know how Lin Yu developed this flying car.’

Li Hua thought for a moment. He had dealt with Yuan Xiaobo enough times to know what kind of person he was, so he reluctantly accepted his claim.

"Alright then, I might as well save my strength. Let’s take the car!"

Yuan Xiaobo waited for Li Hua to get settled, then started up the Hovercar.

The Hovercar rose slowly until it reached the midway point of the treeline, neatly avoiding the canopies above and the undergrowth below. Then, it shot off rapidly toward the Territory Core.

This Hovercar was the territory’s latest model. Its original Rune Engine had been replaced with an Anti-Gravity Engine from the Titan Race. Of course, the Anti-Gravity Engines themselves had been modified—runes had been used to replace their power source and some auxiliary systems.

The Hovercar quickly flew past the outermost forest and arrived at the territory’s first line of defense, a creation of Lin Yu’s—the Abyss.

"So this is your famed ’Impenetrable’ Abyssal City Wall? It’s magnificent. No wonder it’s enough to make the Beastmen stop in their tracks."

Yuan Xiaobo had fought countless battles in the Beastman Territory, so of course he knew the name the Beastman Lords had given to this particular defense.

He nodded. "This is the territory’s outermost defensive line. It was supposedly designed to be a buffer zone for combat. Turns out the Beastmen weren’t strong enough, so it never got to serve its true purpose."

Li Hua remained silent, inwardly skeptical.

’Who would deploy so many defenses in a buffer zone that the Beastmen are too afraid to even enter?’

The Hovercar was incredibly fast. It soon crossed the Abyss and reached the defensive line behind it.